Business Services Newsletter

Volume 14 Number 2 September 2007

Business Services is composed of Procurement Services, Telecommunication Services, Central Receiving & Shipping / Inventory Control, Mail Services, and UAH Copy Center

INSIDE:

2 Who We Are 3 Purchasing “Pitfalls” 4 Penn’s Pens 5 Tips & Reminders 6 Inventory Survey 7 Property Transfer,

Disposal, and Surplus 8 New Gas Cylinder

Request Form 9 Copy Center Budget Charges 10 How to Reach Us

The Business Services staff wishes to extend a warm welcome to all new and returning faculty and staff of the University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH). As we settle into our fall semester routine, remember that Business Services is here to assist you in many ways. Business Services includes six individual units: Business Services (Administration), Central Receiving & Shipping / Inventory Control, Mail Services, Procurement Services, Telecommunications, and the UAH Copy Center. As the names imply, each unit provides a unique and valuable service to the University Community. Business Services If your department requires the unique services of a professional organization or individual, you will be working with Renata Limmer. Renata ensures that all Professional Services Contracts issued for or on behalf of UAH are complete and accurate before routing them through the Office of Legal Counsel and the appropriate Vice President. Sharon Dubose is probably the first person you will see if you visit the Business Services Building (BSB) or the first voice you will hear when calling our main phone number (824-6484). Sharon provides administrative support for Business Services. She also directs callers, coordinates this newsletter, and performs many other administrative tasks.

WELCOME! Central Receiving / Inventory Control “Central Receiving and Shipping / Inventory Control” is a big name for a unit that does a big job for the campus. This unit is a clearinghouse for merchandise acquired by or on behalf of UAH. The Central Receiving staff ensures merchandise delivery that is as swift and damage-free as possible. Outgoing shipments are also processed in the most expedient and cost-effective manner available. Director Robert Perry and Assistant Director Kevin Bennett are assisted by staff members De’Venchie Ford, Lisa Hughes, Ed Ingram, Oliver Reynolds, and student employee Josef Hauenstein. Central Receiving performs the following functions:

• Receive and distribute all parcels and packages shipped to the University

• Package and process all outgoing shipments

• Furnish industrial gases and laboratory alcohol under strict control

• Store and distribute surplus property Central Receiving is responsible for another function performed by its Inventory Control (IC) division. IC maintains accurate records of UAH property and equipment with a value of $5,000 or more and all government-vested equipment. Periodically IC furnishes every Budget Unit Head a complete history of all capital equipment purchased or acquired for his or her department. The accuracy of these records depends on the cooperation of each department to inform IC of equipment changes, transfers, and relocations.

2 Business & Procurement Services

Welcome, continued Mail Services Whether you know their names or not, the faces of Kerry Baker, Reyna Coleman, Laurie Elliff, and Jonathan Mattox are quite familiar to virtually everyone at UAH. They’re the employees who brave the heat of summer, cold of winter, and rainy weather every season to collect and deliver regular United States Postal Service mail, bulk mail, campus mail, and packages throughout the campus. They also provide over-the-counter stamps and limited packaging materials. Procurement Services In keeping with the National Association of Educational Procurement (NAEP), the Purchasing Services unit has changed its name to Procurement Services. NAEP is the non-profit professional organization dedicated to serving higher educational procurement offices. Procurement Services offers centralized purchasing assistance for UAH. Staff members manage Limited Purchase Orders, provide Petty Cash reimbursements, expedite urgently needed goods and services, and assist with returns to vendors. They generate bids while ensuring that purchases conform to State and Federal statutes. Terence Haley, Director of Procurement Services, oversees purchases of chemicals and research supplies and equipment. Suzanne Penn, our newest staff member and Director of Procurement Operations, oversees furnishings, carpet, and moving contracts. For assistance when purchasing computers or peripherals contact Keshia Askew, Senior Procurement Officer. Grace Lymas, Procurement Officer I, is the contact for help with airfare, registration fees, or general office supplies. No Purchase Order process is complete without the Procurement Services Technician, Celia Curry, who distributes the completed Purchase Orders and assists in the disbursement of “Walk-thru” (RUSH) Requisitions, along with many other assigned tasks.

Telecommunication Services The staff of this unit—Bob Blood, Mary Jane (MJ) Blackwell, Demetrice Mitchell, and Curtis Stewart—maintains the communications lifeline for UAH. Besides coordinating all the telephone moves, adds, and changes for a busy campus, the Telecommunications staff repairs telephones, provides calling cards and pagers, and can assist you with understanding your phone’s features, such as voice mail and conference calling. UAH Copy Center The UAH Copy Center is a one-stop, full service copy and printing center open to staff, faculty, and students. Their products and services include (but are not limited to):

• Address labels • Letterhead • Booklets and covers • Newsletters • Brochures and flyers • Notepads • Business cards • Résumés • CD burning / storage • Scanning • Course Packs • Transparencies • Fax services • Theses

In addition, they offer a full line of paper in a variety of colors. Project estimates are free, so don’t hesitate to contact Jackie Hankins and his staff—Trish Tanner, Anthony Garrison, Blake Briscoe, and Ronda Vaden—for all your printing needs. If you need copier paper or training on a copier in your building, then call either Jackie Hankins or Mike Taylor at 824-6383. Mike is a Xerox representative and pleased to help you with maintenance and service issues as well as supplies.

As Associate Vice President for Business Services, my job is to ensure that each unit has the resources it needs to run smoothly, efficiently, and professionally. Together, we strive to provide you, our valued customers, with the best, most timely service possible. We look forward to working with you whenever you need us.

Patricia Moore Associate Vice President,

Business Services

3Business & Procurement Services

Avoid These Common Purchasing Pitfalls

# 1: You finally have your RUSH PO number. Now it’s time to call the vendor, right? No. Solution: You must stop by Procurement first to sign for and pick up the actual Purchase Order before placing the order with the vendor. # 2: You’re all set to fax your supporting documentation (for example, a registration form or travel authorization) to Purchasing. Solution: Before you hit that Send button, always make sure the appropriate Requisition number is referenced on every page of your attachments. # 3: “I want something flat from one of those office stores.” True or False: This is a good commodity description. FALSE. Solution: Provide clear and specific descriptions of the items or services to be purchased. Stock numbers, model numbers, physical descriptions, and so forth should be included if applicable but not substituted for the NAME of the item or service. Refer to your UAH Banner Self-Service Requisitioning Workbook for help on how to do a vendor code lookup, which will help you if you don’t know the full vendor name.

# 4: It is late and you cannot remember the account code for Audio/Visual Equipment under $500. You say to yourself, just enter 7428 for Other Supplies and Materials.

Departments are not authorized to place an order with a vendor without the fully approved, printed, and signed PO in their possession.

Solution: Although it is tempting to use a generic or miscellaneous account code, it helps when you determine whether a more specific account code corresponds to the item or service being purchased before defaulting to a generic or miscellaneous code. For help with finding the proper account code go to the Banner Crosswalk Information website: http://www.uah.edu/admin/Finance/

Reference your Req. or PO number on every page of your attachments.

crosswalks.html Select “Operating Account Codes.” Then select EDIT and FIND from the menu bar (or use the shortcut CTRL+F) to search for a key word in the account code you wish to find. You’ll also find a list of account codes in the UAH Banner Self-Service Requisitioning Workbook.

Be sure to provide precise descriptions for all items being ordered.

# 5: Are you duplicating the information in the document and item text? Solution: There is a difference between document and item text.

• Document text is used for information that pertains to the complete order.

• Item text is used for information that pertains to that specific item.

Business & Procurement Services 4

Penn’s Pens Contacting Sales Reps / Suppliers When you need information about a particular commodity or service, please contact the supplier. If you need further assistance contact Procurement Services. If a sales representative approaches you, remind him or her to contact Procurement Services. When writing prospective suppliers for information, University personnel should include the following statement: “Information requested for planning and budgeting purposes only. A Purchase Order will be issued by Procurement Services when a procurement decision is made.” Help Your Vendors Get Paid Remind vendors to submit all invoices in duplicate to Accounts Payable (SKH 241), NOT to Procurement Services. Sending it to us will only delay the processing of your payment! All invoices must reference the appropriate PO number. Value-Added Purchasing Procurement Services has three different and conflicting purposes: (1) internal control, (2) service, and (3) value. As the funnel through which transactions must pass, Procurement Services ensures compliance with Federal, State, grant and University requirements. The Procurement Officers canvass the marketplace, compare, contrast, weigh, measure, equate, and discuss current market trends in order to make purchases in the best interest of the university. Through the knowledge, experience, and creativity of the staff, more often than not Procurement Services can add value, which can be measured monetarily or qualitatively, to each purchase.

News and Notes Meet Old and New Faces Although she retired from Procurement Services in March, Candy Townley assists with special furnishing projects on an on-call basis. Suzanne Penn, Certified Purchasing Manager (C.P.M.), is the new Director of Procurement Operations. She recently came from the Florida Institute of Technology in Melbourne, Florida, where she was the Director of Purchasing & Material Management for more than 12 years. Suzanne is responsible for furnishings, carpet, tile, paint supplies and equipment; relocation services; document destruction services; and various other special projects and proposals as they arise. You may reach her at 824-6687 or suz.penn@uah.edu. When You Disapprove to Approve All Requisition approvals must be recorded in the same month that the Requisition was created. For example, a Requisition submitted by August 25 must be approved by August 31. This month-end cutoff queues the closing of the accounting month and the timely issuance of monthly budget reports. If a requisition is entered into Banner but not approved by all required signers by the end of that same month:

The Requisition will need to be denied and forwarded to the following month.

Procurement Services must be notified so that the transaction date can be changed to the current month.

Then the approval process will be reinitiated (and completed) before the end of that same month.

To prevent the preceding scenario, the initiator must monitor the approval history of Requisitions in the system to ensure that approvals are posted by month’s end.

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Business & Procurement Services

Tips and Reminders: • ALL PURCHASES MUST FOLLOW

PROPER POLICIES & PROCEDURES All University purchases are made in accordance with Procurement Services policies regardless of funding source. Normal requisitioning procedures (including competitive bidding and justifications) are required to document all purchases and to ensure compliance with Federal, State, grant, and University requirements. Documentation shall be sufficient to constitute a complete history of the actions associated with a Purchase Order in order to:

o Provide a complete background and history of the order

o Support any actions taken o Provide information for review and

investigation o Furnish essential facts in case of

dispute A Purchase Order will not be placed without proper documentation, including written quotes, sole source justification, and other supporting documents. • IS YOUR BLANKET PURCHASE

ORDER THE CORRECT ONE? When a new Blanket Purchase Order (BPO) is issued for the new fiscal year, be sure to inform all departmental and vendor staff that will be using the new BPO of the new PO number. Accounts Payable can only pay invoices with correct PO numbers on them. Using the incorrect number can delay payments to the vendor. • WHAT CONSTITUTES A VALID SOLE

SOURCE JUSTIFICATION? A sole source justification must contain the facts to show the uniqueness of the items and that only one supply source exists. If your requirement is available from more than one source, it is not considered a sole source. Pricing, discounts, etc. are not a consideration for sole source procurements and cannot be used in the justification.

In addition, the justification must be able to withstand the scrutiny of the test of ‘no alternatives’. • HELP US EXPEDITE YOUR

REQUISITIONS To expedite your orders and allow Procurement Services to be more efficient, include full specifications, vendor, and departmental information. Faxing attachments promptly to 824-6151 will help greatly. Be sure the faxed attachments include the Requisition number on all pages and any pricing information that you have. • ALLOW ADEQUATE LEAD TIMES To ensure that purchases are made in accordance with University policies, lead time is essential. Generally, Procurement Services will approve and dispatch simple, straight-forward orders within five business days. Larger, more complex orders require a longer lead time for approvals.

Requisitions Routed Through OSP As you may have noticed, the routing process for Requisitions using research funds and cost sharing funds has been changed. These Requisitions are no longer reviewed by Contracts & Grants Accounting but instead go through the Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP). This routing process applies to the organization code used regardless of the account code.

Central Receiving & Shipping / Inventory Control 6

Central Receiving, Inventory Control, and Mail Services

The Staff and Management of Central Receiving and Shipping, Inventory Control, and Mail Services are dedicated to providing the University of Alabama in Huntsville with the most accurate and expedited mail, package, and freight service possible. Maintaining a nucleus of highly trained and experienced personnel has been the key to our success during recent years and will continue into the future. The department continues to seek new methods to streamline mail processing and delivery. By incorporating technological developments and improving our organizational skills, we will continue to improve our accuracy, speed, and efficiency. To help us maintain our desired level of excellence, we welcome the comments, questions, and concerns of our University customers. Don’t hesitate to contact any of our staff by using the email addresses provided or by calling Central Receiving and Shipping at 824-6315 and Mail Services at 824-6116.

Inventory Control Survey Inventory Control (IC) personnel are out and about on campus working diligently to update the University’s property records. Since the transition to Banner, we have access to much more detailed asset information. In addition we are able to extract information that previously was unavailable to us. This additional detail will help us to ensure that your department’s asset listing is complete, current, and accurate. Prior to visiting your department to conduct an inventory survey, we will forward to your central contact person(s) a copy of the current property listing. We encourage each department to carefully review the list for accuracy and to begin preliminary location of mobile assets (laptops, equipment on loan, etc.). When we send the property listing, we will also schedule a convenient time to work with a departmental representative to perform the survey. During the survey, Inventory Control personnel will visually verify each asset, making notes to correct our records for items out of recorded location and to update asset condition. Any items that cannot be located during the survey must, by University policy, be recorded as missing in the property records. At the survey’s conclusion, the department head and the Inventory Control representative will sign an acknowledgement that the survey was conducted. Any missing property must be listed on this inventory certification. (See the “Missing Property” section on the next page.)

7Inventory Control

Relocation or Transfer of Property When relocating or transferring any asset bearing a Property of UAH or Property of U.S. Government inventory tag or label, please be sure to complete a UAH Property Relocation / Transfer form. The form is available on the UAH Business Services website under the FORMS link: http://www.uah.edu/admin/purchasing/bsindex.htm The transfer form should be used not only to record the physical movement of an asset, but also to record any change in custodianship, even if the asset does not change location. Transfer of custodianship should be reported in a timely manner so that property records remain current and accurate. UAH policy requires outgoing department heads to verify and sign off on all property listed for their area. Incoming department heads assume responsibility for the department’s assets and must verify and sign for all inventoried property held by the department. Inventory Control is ready and willing to assist with the property verification by both outgoing and incoming department heads. Disposal of UAH Property Any time you wish to dispose of an inventoried asset, you must complete a UAH Property Disposition form, available on the Business Services website. This form requires the approval and signature of a budget unit head, dean, or chair. Unfortunately, we cannot process a disposal request bearing a proxy signature. Additionally, prior to disposing of or cannibalizing any inventoried asset, you must contact Inventory Control so that we may have a representative witness the disposal. The Inventory Control team member will remove any UAH property tags prior to disposal. Do not remove property tags yourself — Inventory Control personnel must perform this action. NOTE: Government-owned property cannot be disposed of without approval from the Government. Contact the Office of Sponsored Programs prior to taking any action involving the disposal or removal of Government property.

Surplus Property Departments from time to time may wish to declare an inventoried asset as surplus property. When doing so, follow current University guidelines. If you wish to have a surplus asset removed from your area, you must complete the Facilities Move Form, available on the UAH Facilities and Operations website. The form must be completed and then signed by a budget unit head, director, dean, or chair. Forward the completed form to Procurement Services. When completing the Facilities Move Form, make certain to list each inventoried asset separately. Include a description, serial number, and UAH inventory tag number. Failure to include inventory tag numbers may result in surplus property not being removed from your inventory records. When declaring excess property as surplus, do not complete any other Inventory Control documents. Missing Property All property that cannot be located during an inventory survey must be noted as missing. The missing items will be listed on the Inventory Acknowledgement Form, and the department will retain a copy of this document for their reference. From the time Inventory Control personnel declare the survey complete, departments have 90 days in which to locate the property and report their findings to IC. Equipment not located within 90 days must be reported as missing to the Vice President, Finance and Administration. IC and Accounting will be notified by the Vice President’s office to take appropriate measures. Departments will be accountable for all missing property.

8 Central Receiving & Shipping / Mail Services

Gas Cylinder Form Revised The Gas Cylinder / Laboratory Alcohol Request Form (CRB 1-001) has been revised to provide departments with written records of all returns of empty or unused cylinders. An area has been added to the bottom of the form for the user to authorize the return of empty or unused cylinders to the vendor. The user simply enters the ID or serial number of the cylinder(s) and pick-up location and then signs the form. After we receive the completed and signed form, we will schedule the vendor to pick up the cylinder(s) as soon as possible. If the user includes a fax number we will return a copy of the form with the new cylinder delivery date, vendor’s signature, and the pick-up date of the old cylinders. The top of the form, used for requesting gas or laboratory alcohol, has not been changed. The new request form will be included in the FORMS section of the Business Services website. If you have any questions call 824-6315 or send an email to perryr@uah.edu.

Save that Toner Label Inside every box of laser jet toner cartridges is a prepaid return label. Save that label and attach it to the box containing the used cartridge. For shipping records, include your department address on the label. Leave the old cartridge (with label attached) in the mail drop area in your building. The cartridge will be picked up the next working day and returned to the vendor. Cartridges without this label cannot be returned unless the department is willing to pay the shipping cost.

To return empty gas cylinders, simply provide the container ID/serial number, container location, and your signature (written and printed).

Be Aware of New Postage Rates

As of May 14th of this year, the rates for a first class letter changed and are given in the box below. For a complete list of all the new rates for Airmail, Certified Mail, Book Rate, and Standard Bulk Mail visit the United States Postal Service website (www.USPS.com). For specific rates contact Mail Services at 824-6116.

$0.41 for letters weighing 1.00 oz. or less $0.58 for letters weighing 1.01 oz. to 2.00 oz. $0.75 for letters weighing 2.01 oz. to 3.00 oz.

9 UAH Copy Center

UAH Copy Center

SOMETIMES THE SIMPLEST WAY TO GET SOMETHING DONE IS TO HAVE SOMEONE ELSE DO IT!

We are a FULL service copy center. We offer fax services, full color copies, black and white reprographics, printing press, finishing, and scanning. In addition, we offer a full line of paper in a variety of colors. We are located on campus for your convenience. For more information call 824-6383 or drop by our office on John Wright Drive in the Business Services Building. Let us do the work for you! Budget Charges As part of our ongoing effort to improve customer service and keep our customers informed, we wish to announce a change in the way charges will appear on budget statements. You will now see a job number with each charge. This change should help you when balancing your budget.

Changes to University Documents Any request to change the style of business cards, letterhead, envelopes, or any University-wide brochures or maps must get permission from University Relations (824-6414) before the change can be made. We have a set template for these items and cannot alter them without express written permission from University Relations. Submission Web Page Web submission is in the final stages of completion. Jackie Hankins, Manager of the UAH Copy Center, will be contacting each department to schedule a demonstration and training. This new service will enable our customers to order jobs online from the convenience of their desktops.

Thank you for your continued support. We look forward to serving you.

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Business Services & Procurement Services

Who We Are and How to Reach Us

PERSONNEL: TITLE: EMAIL ADDRESS: PHONE EXT:

Business Services (Administration) Patricia Moore Associate Vice President, Business Services moorep@uah.edu 6484 Sharon Dubose Staff Assistant syd0001@uah.edu 6484 Renata Limmer Senior Business Services Assistant limmerr@uah.edu 6485 Procurement Services Terence Haley Director, Procurement Services haleyt@uah.edu 6674 Suzanne Penn Director, Procurement Operations suz.penn@uah.edu 6687 Keshia Askew Senior Procurement Officer askewkc@uah.edu 6491 VACANT Procurement Officer II Not Available 6675 Grace Lymas Procurement Officer I lymasg@uah.edu 6489 Candace Townley Purchasing Design Specialist townleyc@uah.edu 6492 Celia Curry Procurement Services Technician curryc@uah.edu 1071 Telecommunication Services Bob Blood Director, Telecommunication Services bloodb@uah.edu 6129 Mary Jane Blackwell Telecommunications Analyst blackwem@uah.edu 6815 Demetrice Mitchell Telecommunications Clerk mitched@uah.edu 3363 Curtis Stewart Telecommunications Specialist stewarce@uah.edu 6129 UAH Copy Center Jackie Hankins Manager, UAH Printing & Copy Center hankinsj@uah.edu 6383 Trish Tanner DocuTech Specialist printsvc@uah.edu 6383 Anthony Garrison Customer Service and DocuTech printsvc@uah.edu 6383 Blake Briscoe Printing Press printsvc@uah.edu 6383 Ronda Vaden DocuTech and Support printsvc@uah.edu 6383 Mike Taylor Account Associate for Copiers taylorm2@uah.edu 1-888-272-4533

Central Receiving & Shipping/Inventory Control, Mail Services

Robert Perry Director, Mail Services, Inventory & Material Control perryr@uah.edu 6315 Kevin Bennett Assistant Director, Mail Services, Inventory &

Material Control kevin.bennett@uah.edu 6315

Oliver Reynolds Senior Inventory Assistant reynolo@uah.edu 6315 Ed Ingram Senior Material Control Assistant ewi0001@uah.edu 6315 Lisa Hughes Material Control / Inventory Assistant hughesl@uah.edu 6315 De’Venchie Ford Material Control Assistant dmf0001@uah.edu 6315 Kerry Baker Senior Mail Services Clerk bakerk@uah.edu 6116 Laurie Elliff Senior Mail Services Clerk elliffl@uah.edu 6116 Reyna Coleman Mail Clerk II colemard@uah.edu 6116 Jonathan Mattox Mail Clerk I jrm0001@uah.edu 6116 Josef Hauenstein Student Assistant Not Available Not Available

11 Business Services Newsletter

This newsletter is distributed by Business Services as an informational guide to the University Community. This issue provides information from Central Receiving & Shipping / Inventory Control, Mail Services, Procurement Services, Telecommunication Services, and the UAH Copy Center / Printing Services. Our goal is to provide helpful information for doing business with the various units of the Business Services department. If we can assist you, don’t hesitate to contact us. You can read the current Business Services Newsletter as well as previous issues online at www.uah.edu/admin/purchasing. Scroll down and click on the graphic of the man holding the key and then click on “Newsletter.” If you have any comments or suggestions for future articles contact Sharon Dubose at syd0001@uah.edu.

Published by Business Services ● Editor Brenda Wade; Coordinator Sharon Dubose ● Printed by the UAH Copy Center

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This publication was printed by the UAH Copy Center.

Business Services Newsletter is a newsletter to the UAH Community. We welcome your comments and suggestions for improvement and for future articles.

An Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Institution